Vehicle-wheel.



J. R. VICKERY.

VEHICLE WHEEL.

APPLICATION HLED ms. 10. m2.

1,154,948. PatentedSept. 28, 1915.

Inf/7717171. i

'IlIIlIlIl/dl! :numnu I'LANOGIAFH conwummrrou, n cy JQFN B. VIQKEBY, OFCHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

VEHICLE-WHEEL.

Specification 0! Letters Patent. Patented Sept. 28, 1915.

Application illedIebraax-y 10, 1912. Serial No. 616,800.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it knownthatI, JOHN R. V1cxsar, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Vehicle-Wheels, of whichthe followin is a specification.

This invention re ates to improvements in -whecls for automobiles andother vehicles;

and has for its main object to provide a practical and economicalsubstitute for the pneumatic tire commonly employed to afford a cushiontread for such wheels.

Substitutes for the usual pneumatic tire comprising, generally, radiallymovable spring-backed members of VflIlOllS' forms mounted within orconstituting segments of the rim of the wheel have heretoforebeen pro)osed; but, so far as I am aware, such devices have heretofore beentoocomplicated or expensive to prove practical, are .driiicult toconstruct and assemble, and are liable to become broken or deranged,especially in travel over rough roadways. My present invention presentsa. simple and entirely practicable form ofspring tire, comparatively,easy and simple to construct and assemble, and combining a high.de reeof strength and rigidity with perfect freedom of the radially movablecushioned tread members.

My invention, its advantages, -and. its principle of operation will allbe readily understood when considered in connection with theaccompanying drawing in which 1 have illustrated onepractical-embodiment thereof, and in which- Figure 1 is a sideelevation, partly broken out and in vertical section on the line 1-l ofFig. 2 of a fragment of the tire portion of a wheel embodying myinvention. Fig. 2 is a to plan view of Fig. 1 showing the tread sur aceof the tire. Big. 3 is a transverse section through the tire structureand folly of my improved wheel.

Referring to the drawing, 5 designates the folly of an ordinaryautomobile wheel, upon which is secured by any suitable means, such asscrews 6, a )lain steel band or hoop 7 constituting the inner peripheralmember of a hollow rim structure. Each side wall of this hollow rimstructure is itself a substantially hollow, radially chambered membercomprising outer and inner annular plates 8 and 9, respectively,connocted by radial transverse webs or parti- 2) extend the stems otionslO, whereby there is formed in each side wall member a series ofradial chambers 11 located side by side throughout the entire annularextent of the sidewall member. These side wall members, thus formed,

are stepped at their inner edges upon the edge portions of the band 7,although the. outer walls 8 preferably are carried down so as to overlapthe edges of the band 7, as clearly shown in Figs. 1. and

The outer peripheral band of the hollow rim structure is preferablysectional; each section comprising a substantially flat plate 12 thatextends transvorselv of and between the outer edges of the side wallmembers. resting at its ends u )OIl the inner plates 1) and webs 10 ofsaid slde wall members. In tegral with the ends of the plates 12 areradial extensions 13 that occupy and fit with comparative snugncss theradial chambers 11 o the side walls. These extensions 13 terminate inthreaded ends 14 which are passed through holes 15 in the ed e portionsof the band 7 and are engaged by nuts 16,, by which the side and outerperipheral portions of the hollow. rim structure are strongly and riidly secured to the base of inner periphera portion; the nuts 10 beingpreferably secured against loosening by. cotter pins 17. As will be seenby reference to Figs. 1 and 2, the transversely extending plates 12which nnitedly make up the outer periphery of the hollow rim;,structurefit snugly edge to edge, and. secured as shown. are practically aseffective as a continuous outer band.

..Through registering openin s 18 and 19 a. series of spring-pressedplungers, the outer ends of which constitute nnitedly the tread portionof the wheel. Each 'of these plungcrs. in the preferredform hereinshown. comprises a mad portion 20, a stem portion 21, a ledge hereinshown as a collar 22 secured to tin stem 21 as by a cross pin 23, and asleeve 24 surroundin that portion of the stem ivin between t e head 20and the collar said sleeve 24 slidably engaging the hole ls in the outerperiphery of the rim. Surrounding the inner stem portions of the lungersare the cushioning springs 25, herein shown as helical springs confinedeudwise between the collars 22 and the inner pcri )hcral band 7. The ledes or collars 22 t ms constitute nbutments or the outer ends of thesprings and also stops that cooperate ill?) lit) with the outerperiphery of the rim to limit the outward movement of the plan ers underthe thrust of the springs. Eaci plunger stem is further preferablyprovided with an annular shoulder 26 (Fig. 1) so ilaced as toconstitute, in cooperation with tie iiiner periphery of the rim, a stopto limit the inward movement of the plunger under load.

I have herein shown a tire tread comprising transverse rows' of threeplunger-s each. but it will bcunderstood that the number of plungers andtheir relative arrangement in the tread is immaterial and optionalwithin the purview of the invention. In an ar rangement such as thatshown, the stems of the outer plungers of each row lie outside theopposite sides of the folly, while the latter ma be provided with aseries of central soc ets 27 to accommodate the inward movement of theintermediate or central plunger stems.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the inner periphery of the rimis a plain band rovided with the necessary apertures; the c ambered sidewalls may be either cast metal structures or built up structures; andthe outer eri heral sections are substantiall meta ores easily stampedand bent to orm; an all of the parts are capable of being readilyassembled and separated. For instance, in case of the breaking of aspring or other injury to one of the sections, the entire section,including the plungers and their springs can be removed by simplyremoving the nuts 16. The s rings, being wholly contained within theiollow or box-like rim are protected from dirt and injury, and theopenings in the outer periplr cry of the rim are at all times occupiedand closed by the plum er stems.

While I have s iown a practicable and workable embodiment of myinvention, it will be evident to those acquainted with the art that thestructural details may be varied somewhat without involvim any departurefrom the principles involve and hence the invention is not confined tothe exact embodiment illustrated except to the extent clearly indicatedin specific claims.

It will be apparent that the resilient rim structure forming the subjectmatter of the present invention does not involve any change ormodification of the other parts of a standard wheel, beyond theformation of the sockets or chambers 27 of the telly to accommodate thecentral plunger stems, and that the structure is ca able of a )plicationto any of the standard orms of w ieels now in use.

I claim:

1. In a vehicle wheel, a hollow rim structure comprising an innerperipheral band adapted to be secured to the telly, chambered side wallsat their inner edges stepped upon the edge portions of said innerperipheral band, and a sectional outer peripheral band the sections ofwhich have integral radial extensions passing through the chambers oisaid side walls and secured to said inner peripheral band, incombination with springpressed plungers slidably mounted in registeringapertures in said peripheral bands and unitedly constituting the treadportion of the whee .2. In a vehicle wheel, a hollow rim structurecomprising an inner peripheral band adapted to be secured to the telly,chambered side walls at their inner edges stepped upon the edge portionsof said inner pcriplr eral band, and a sectional outer peripheral bandthe sections of which have integral radial extensions occupying thechambers of said side walls and terminating in threaded ends passedthrough holes in the edge portions of said inner eripheral band, andnuts engaging said t readed ends in combination with spring-pressedplungers slidably mounted in registering apertures in said peripheralbands and unitedly constituting the tread portion of the wheel.

JOHN R. VICKERY.

Witnesses:

SAMUEL N. Pom), Dale! G. Tnonsnn.

Copies of thil patent may be obtained for ave cents each, by addieuingthe Commissioner oi Patents. Washington, D. 0."

